Yelapa and the Tsunami

Our stop in Yelapa was cut short by the Tsunami warning. Here is the story.....We were all set to go to shore to hike to an even bigger water fall then the one posted in these photos. It is about an hour hike by foot inland. It was 11:00 am. Jack had spent all morning packing up his backpack full of things for our adventure and survival down the river to the giant water fall. We had no cell phone reception, radio, or internet connection in this very remote village, so we were completely unaware of the horrible event in Japan. A fisherman in a panga was nice enough to swing by our boat as we were about to head to shore. He told us to head out to the sea instead as a Tsunami was headed this way, and expected to hit in about 2 hours. We asked if there was anything we could do to help, since the only way out of Yelapa is by horse, ATV, or boat. There are no roads into this sweet village. He thanked us and told us they would be fine. Well, it took us no time at all the take his advise and get into deeper waters. We headed back towards La Cruz, and once we had a good radio signal, we stopped the boat and just hung out in 1000 feet of water for the day. I gave Patrick a fancy hair cut to keep myself amused........and Jack could not stop laughing. We never felt a thing, but according to the Marina, there were several surges of water that passed through. Many other boats from around the area headed out to sea as well, and once the winds came up, we all enjoyed a nice day of sailing around the bay. We decided to head to Punta Mitta, since the winds were taking us in that direction, and we are now anchored off one of Jacks favorite surf spots. As far as we know, we are in the clear. In the morning, we will head in to catch a few waves, and enjoy the clear, clean water we are now in. I am happy to say, theses images of Yelapa have not changed, and we are all safe on this side of the ocean. Our thoughts and prayers are with people of Japan. May they be free from pain and suffering soon. Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti Om

Leaving La Cruz, Huichol art, and Reiki

Today is our last day in La Cruz....for now anyway. It is a hard place to leave, and an easy place to stay. Right now there is a meca of cruisers here. Many with children, who are gearing up to cross to the South Pacific, or head North with us into the Sea of Cortez. In our 3 weeks here, we have made life long friends, who we will remember forever. While here I have also fallen in love with Huichol art.....Pronounced Witch-ol. They make the most amazing things out of tiny tiny beads and yarn. I can not pass by a stand without stopping to marvel at their crafts, and spend a few pesos..... They are one of the last group of indigenous Mexicans who have retained their traditional religion and they extend back to the Mesoamerican age. The hand embroidery on the clothing they wear is stunning, and done by the mothers, or the wives. I also have a hard time walking by a fresh coconut stand without spending some pesos. Have I told you how much I love Mexico lately.......This past week, I was also introduced to Reiki by a fellow Cruiser Jo on s/v Blue Moon. She and her husband Rob were in the yoga classes I taught, and it was an instant connection. She attuned me to a level one (there are three levels) and it has been a cool cool cool experience I must say. I have worked with energy in my classes, but this takes it to a whole nother level! I am adjusting to the tuning, as it takes four weeks to really settle in. Patrick is patiently waiting to be my first tune up, and Jack is, as you may have guessed, right in there with a ga-zillion questions about my new hobby. Jack has been having the time of his life here, with birthday parties, social gatherings, and the daily kids club. Today they made volcanos on the beach. It is going to be hard to pull out of this community that feels like home. But we are ready to untie our dock lines and head back out to the sea.

Steve and Stuff

Our brother-in-law, Steve, returned home to Idaho Falls today, after spending four weeks with us. He was a great help and will be missed in many ways. Thank you Mo for letting us have him for so long. And thank you Steve for being such an awesome guy, for the love and the support, spoken and unspoken.

We are still in La Cruz enjoying the many things this area has to offer.....like surfing, a great Sunday morning market with fresh organic foods and beautiful local crafts , a fresh fish market just steps away from our boat, and lots of great great cruising families. Jack is at the kids club as I type this, Patrick is out shopping for the perfect surf board, and I have the boat all to myself..... AAHHHHH.....deep exhale. This morning I had the privilege of teaching a yoga class in the yacht club, and have offered to do it again on Friday. It feels so good to teach again. I have been teaching here and there, and I realize now it is something I need to continue doing for my ummmmm.......mental health. I have allowed myself to fall way off my center in these past few weeks, in case you didn't notice......but I am coming back to solid ground even if there are still plenty of issues to keep me challenged in this life time. It is how I am choosing to navigate that will make all the difference. Keyword....choosing. Choice. I just love this word right now. I have a choice to be happy or to not be happy. Regardless. I am choosing to be happy for no reason right now in this moment, and hopefully in the next as well.

Yesterday, Steve choose to spend his last day on the beach in Punta Mita, another quick bus ride from where we are now. We took Jack and his friend Cameron from s/v Pahambili surfing. They had a blast, and were in the water catching waves all day long. Patrick was out there catching the waves too, and it was nice to see him enjoy some fun as well.

The weather here has been like a semi-warm California fall day. I even had to break out the heavy blankets for sleeping that were stored away. I made roasted garlic tomato soup the other night. Soup is not something I would have imagined I would be making in Mexico, but it was chilly enough for the inspiration. There is a sweet cool ocean breeze coming in right now, and I am roasting beets in honey and olive oil for a warm goat cheese Arugula salad. Yum! The cooler weather is a nice change from the baking heat just a month ago. Although it must be in the high 70's, low 80's......which feels cool to me now! We plan to hang out here for one or two more weeks to surf and surf some more.

To conclude this post I will share a quote that one of my FB friends posted today by the poet Mary Oliver. It was exactly what I needed to read as I make my way back to being grateful for all that I am witnessing and learning on this journey.

Let me keep my mind on what matters, which is my work. Mostly standing still and learning to be astonished.

Love, Peace and Clarity

xxooxxooxxoo

A Zoo like no other

We spent the day at the Zoo in Mismaloya, which was a three bus ride excursion from La Cruz Marina, but soooo worth it. Ridding the bus in Mexico is an experience in itself! It is a great way to get around, and you can go just about anywhere by bus here, for very few pesos. We went to the zoo with our friends on Eyoni, who also happen to be best friends with our best friends who are watching over our house in California....Talk about six degrees of separation. They are one boat away from us even. So back to this Zoo.... all the animals were awake and hungry! We fed just about all of them, even the Hippo! There were few that had fences or plexi glass separating us from them. Jack even had the opportunity to frolic with a baby Jaguar, and two baby tigers. It was an experience he will never forget. After the zoo we met up with three other families for pizza and beer at Philos, a great pizza place walking distance from our marina. We are loving La Cruz, and the fact that there are 5 boys here Jacks age. Provisioning is great, the weather is great, there is always a party to attend or a gathering to go to, so life is good, very very good once again. It will be hard to leave this place. So far it is up in our top 5 favorites.